2025年08月02日 La narrativa de mujeres en lengua maya tsotsil/The Narrative of Women in the Tsotsil Maya Language

Since the mid-21st century, stories written in the Tzotzil language by women have begun to emerge in Mexico. Two prominent figures in this movement are Ruperta Bautista, a poet with a long-standing career, and Cristina Patishtán López. The former published her novel Ixbalam-ek’ / Estrella jaguar in 2023. This work recreates a pre-Hispanic world, but from the perspective of a young queen who is forced to take the place of her husband, killed in war with an enemy nation. The latter released her first short story collection in 2024, titled Ch’ulelal. In this collection, she addresses contemporary issues through characters who experience ominous sensations and through supernatural elements that disrupt everyday life.

※(注記)This seminar will be held in Spanish

About the Lecturer:Mikel Ruiz
Mikel Ruiz is a Maya Tsotsil fiction writer and essayist from San Juan de Chamula, Chiapas. He began his literary practice in 2007 when he entered a seminar for analysis and composition of literature. There he wrote his first story, published in an anthology titled "Chiapas Maya Awakening." His creative work is inspired by the trend of youths who leave their indigenous communities to pursue life in Mexico’s major cities. He highlights the suffering and the resilience of today’s young Tsotsil people in the face of modern technology and ideology. Other events in his narrative draw from Ruiz’s experiences in his pueblo, such as the public murder of a community member when he was young. His stories are dense yet thoughtful commentaries on the tension between Chiapas’ many cultures and parallel histories.

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